Suspension and mounting for washing machines



June 5, 1956 A. LODGE 2,748,945

SUSPENSION AND MOUNTING FOR WASHING MACHINES Filed Sept. 11, 1952 3 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. gum [000E SUSPENSION AND MOUNTING FOR WASHING MACHINES Filed Sept. 11, 1952 A. LODGE June 5, 1956 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. A 1 VIN [00 6E BY WE? June 5, 1956 A. LODGE 2,748,945

SUSPENSION AND MOUNTING FOR WASHING MACHINES Filed Sept. 11, 1952 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 F JNVENTOR. filVIN [006E United States Patent 4 SUSPENSION AND MOUNTING FOR WASHING MACHINES Alvin Lodge, Erie, Pa., assignor to Blackstone Corporation, Jamestown, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application September 11, 1952, Serial No. 309,030

2 Claims. (Cl. 210-72) This invention relates to improvements in a domestic washing machine of the type in which a single receptacle is utilized for the operation of washing, rinsing and centrifugally drying clothes. More particularly, the invention is directed to structural details of a support or suspension for a unit that consists of a drive mechanism and a receptacle that is rotatable about a vertical axis.

In washing machines of the type to which the present invention relates, much difficulty has been encountered in controlling vibration of the receptacle when it is operated as a centrifuge for the purpose of drying clothes contained therein. invariably, the load within the receptacle is in an unbalanced condition, not readily susceptible to being balanced by reason of the automatic sequential operation of the machine, and tends to produce wear, displacement, or even breakage of parts as a result of such vibration.

Certain washing machines of this type have necessarily been of extremely rugged construction and have been permanently secured to a fixed surface in order that vibration, occurring during a spinning operation, would not produce annoying vibrations, noises, breakage of water and drainage connection, and tramping. This method of controlling vibration of these machines is unsatisfactory and entirely fails to take into consideration the cause, or provide structure for the absorption or actual elimination thereof.

Experiments have disclosed two things; namely 1) that almost without exception, all spinning type washing receptacles operate with an unbalanced load; and, (2) that this unbalance, with its inherent excessive vibration, can only be reduced or overcome througha supporting mechanism which includes structure capable of absorbing some of the vibrations and counteracting others.

To this end, the present invention is directed to the provision of flexible mountings for a suspended unit which comprises the receptacle and its drive mechanism, and it is therefore an important object to provide a combination of structure by which the center of gravity of the operating parts actually, or nearly, coincides with the center of rotation throughout the spinning operation of the receptacle.

It is also an object of the invention to provide a structure in which the suspension causes the unit to partake of the action of a pendulum, with the effective pivot point thereof at or above the center of gravity of the operating mechanism in order to minimize horizontal movement of the receptacle. 7

Another and important object or the invention lies in the rovision of a structure in which the required supporting and operative parts are so arranged as to serve as a part of the ballast in order to etiect a smooth spinning operation.

A still further and important object of the invention lies in the provision of a suspension that embodies relatively soft, energy absorbing, flexible members which not only tend to absorb a measure of the vibration during a spinning operation, but tend to counteract and thus prevent the building up of lesser vibrations to an uncontrollable oXfht.

2,748,945 Patented June 5, 1956 Other objects and advantages of the invention will be more fully understood and appreciated from a consideration of the following specification, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. l is a side elevational view of a cabinet enclosed washing machine in which one form of the present invention is embodied, a part of the side wall of said cabinet being broken away to disclose the general organization and location of the parts of the inventive structure;

Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectional view taken substantially as indicated by the line 2-2 of Fig. 1, and shows, in plan, the general arrangement of the suspension embodyi ng the invention;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary plan view (partly in section) of the structure shown centrally of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical sectional View, being taken substantially on the line 44 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary elevational view, certain parts being broken away to disclose anchoring details of the flexible members; and.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged perspective view of one of the several flexible members.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, the refrcnce numeral it) is employed to generally designate a rectan ular cabinet in which a single receptacle washing, rinsing, and centrifugally drying machine, embodying the invention, is contained. The cabinet itself constitutes no part of the invention and is only shown for the purpose of disclosing the general proportions required to enclose a machine in which the invention is embodied and mounted. The cabinet may be considered to be divided into upper and lower compartments 11 and 12, respectively, by a partition 13. This partition is attached, in any convenient manner, to the cabinet walls and, centrally, terminates as a circular opening 14 that is defined by an upstanding rim 15. Certain supporting and operating parts of the machine project through this opening from the lower compartment 12 to the upper compartment 11. In the upper compartment these parts mount certain operative structure, including the rotatable receptacle, whereas, in the lower compartment, they are joined to and form part of the drive mechanism. The space between the structure within the opening 14 and the rim 16 may be made water-tight by bridging with a flexible boot 17 which, in the present disclosure, is rolled upon and clamped to the rim 16, as suggested at 18. The inner edge of this boot is secured by a clamp 19 to a housing of the structure that projects through the opening 14.

The structure extending through the opening 14 into the compartment 12 comprises a tubular member 21 which, at its lower end, is seated on a plate 22, being secured thereto by three studs 23 in triangular arrangement. These studs are engaged with laterally extending bosses 24 of the member 21. A bearing 26 is located in the lower end of this tubular member, beneath a sleeve '27. Extending through the sleeve 27 is a drive shaft 28 that derives its axial support from the bearing 26. The lower end of this shaft extend beneath the plate 22 and carries a pulley 29. The upper end of the tubular memher 21 encloses an outwardly extending annular portion 31 that provides support for a plate 32. This plate in turn constitutes a support for the central base 33 of the Washing receptacle 34. The receptacle 34 and its support, through the tubular member 21, are shown and described only to an extent to disclose the upper and intermediate portions of the unit that is suspended by the structure constituting the invention. A more complete disclosure of this particular structure is set out in my co-pending applications Serial No. 277,474 and Serial No. 285,509.

A belt 36 connects pulley 29 with the upper portion of a double pulley 37. The other portion of this double pulley is connected by a belt 38 with a pulley 39. Pulley 37 is fixed on a shaft 41 that projects into and drives a water pump 42. Pulley 39 is carried on a shaft 43 that extends vertically from the upper end of a motor 44.

Supporting straps 46, three in number, are in the same triangular arrangement as the bosses 24 and include it" turned upper flanges 47 which seat against the under face of plate 22. The studs 23 serve to secure these flanges to the plate. The depending portions of straps 46 include slightly outwardly inclined portions 48. From those portions, the straps extend vertically downwardly and ultimately terminate in laterally extending flanges 49. The motor 44 includes upper and lower motor bearing housings 51. Upper brackets 52, joined to the upper housing 51, are inclined outwardly and down wardly and are permanently secured, as by welding, to the inner face of the vertical portions of the straps 46. Similarly, lower brackets 53 are joined to the lower motor housing and extend outwardly and upwardly and are secured, as by welding, to the straps 46. In this manner, the motor 44 is suspended or hung by the straps 46.

The flanges 49 of the straps 46 constitute the means by which the entire weight of the motor, drive mechanism and receptacle are supported. The supporting structure comprises a horizontally disposed collar 54 which encloses that portion of the tubular member 21 directly above the reduction drive. This collar is of equilateral triangular formation. Depending from the collar are legs 56. Each leg is made integral with the collar at one of the bends thereof and extends downwardly and outwardly. The inclination of the legs from the collar to their lower ends is such that the lower flanged ends 57 approximately reach the vertical walls of the cabinet 10. The ends 57 rest on inturned flanges 58 of these cabinet walls and are secured thereto in any manner, as by bolts 59.

A resilient member 61 is mounted on and serves to bridge each bend of the collar 54. This member comprises a pair of metal channels 62 and 63. These chan nels receive a resilient block 64. The block 64 has spaced upper and lower flanges 66 which, with adjacent portions of the body of the block, are enclosed by the channels 62 and 63. Flanges 67 of these channels are bent inwardly to grip the the inwardly curved sides 68 of the body portion of the block. An opening 69 extends vertically through the block and is concentric with openings in the channels. A suspension rod 71 projects through the channels and block and is secured to the uppermost channel by a nut 72. A further resilient block 73, of the same cross sectional proportions as block 64, is enclosed, top and bottom, by channels 74 and 76. The top channel 74 is welded or otherwise permanently joined to the under face of flange 49 of strap 46. The flange, channels, and block have concentric openings through which the lower end of rod 71 projects. The portion of the rod extending beneath the lower channel 76 is fitted with a nut 77.

From the foregoing, it is evident that the support for the unit that consists of a drive mechanism and a receptacle, is connected with the unit at substantially its lower end through strap flanges 49, but that the point of actual suspension is well above the drive mechanism, being located at the upper ends of the rods 71. Considering the legs 56 and collar 54 to be of the nature of a tripod, ample stability for support of the resilient members 61 is provided. The blocks 64 and 73 are of such design as to have ample resiliency and, there fore, are capable of absorbing considerable vibration. The motor 44, it will be noted, is slightly off center from the axis of rotation of the receptacle but this seeming unbalance is cured by the diametrically opposite disposition of the water pump 42 and a part of the reduction drive. In Fig. 4 it is clear that the motor and pump are rigidly secured to and carried by the cagelike arrangement formed by the supporting straps 46 and that these straps in turn provide support for the tubular member 21 and the receptacle 34, as well as having direct connection with the resilient portion of the supporting structure. In other words, all of the parts of the suspended unit are rigid with respect to each other and, therefore, the unit, when suspended in the manner shown, is of the nature of a pendulum. When the receptacle is being rotated and contains an unevenly distributed load, lateral vibrations are set up in one direction or another. These vibrations, however, by the tendency of the lower portion of the unit to move in the opposite direction, are somewhat dampened due to the weight factor of the motor, pump, and reduction drive. Additionally, vibrations transmitted in this manner to the lower portion of the unit, are in turn substantially absorbed, first, by the lower resilient members, and then by the upper resilient members.

Although applicant has shown and described only one form of his invention, it will be apparent that variations in the structural details to adapt the invention to domestic washing machines of other types may be made and are contemplated insofar as such variations are within the spirit and scope of the invention as set out in the annexed claims.

Having thus set forth my invention, what I claim as new and for which I desire protection by Letters Patent is:

1. In a washing machine, a receptacle rotatable about a vertical axis, a tubular support and drive shaft depending from said receptacle, a cage comprising a set of three straps equidistant from the vertical axis of said receptacle, the upper ends of said straps being joined to the lower end of said tubular support, the lower ends of said straps providing a seat and laterally off-center mounting for a motor adapted to rotate said receptacle, a water pump between two of said straps and located off center in the opposite direction from said motor, reduction drive means operatively connecting said motor with said pump and said drive shaft, said motor, pump and means being disposed to balance on center with the axis of said receptacle, a rigid collar extending around and out of contact with said support, and yieldable means depending from said collar joined to said straps adjacent their lower ends.

2. In a Washihng machine, a receptacle rotatable about a vertical axis, a tubular support and drive shaft depending from said receptacle, a cage comprising a set of three straps equidistant from the vertical axis of said receptacle, the upper ends of said straps being joined to the lower end of said tubular support, the lower ends of said straps providing a seat and laterally off-center mounting for a motor adapted to rotate said receptacle, a water pump between two of said straps and located off center in the opposite direction from said motor, reduction drive means operatively connecting said motor with said pump and said drive shaft, said motor, pump and means being disposed to balance on center with the axis of said receptacle, an equilateral triangular collar extending around and out of contact with said support, suspension means interposed between said straps and said collar comprising resilient members bridging the bends of said collar, rods suspended at their upper ends by said members, and further resilient members joined to the lower ends of said rods, said further members being secured to said straps adjacent the lower ends thereof.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,750,016 Meyer Mar. 11, 1930 1,936,461 Sando et a1. Nov. 21, 1933 2,375,635 Dyer May 8, 1945 2,513,844 Castner et al. July 4, 1950 2,583,579 Lodge Jan. 29, 1952 

